Sunday, October 28, 2007

Not everyone can be the giant of their era - and this diminutive reptile is proof. The biggest Captorhinus was only about a foot long; runts topped out at about 7 inches.

This field sketch of a Captorhinus shows it much closer to a Dimetrodon that it would have wanted to be, in order to illustrate its small size. (c) Robert T. Bakker

In addition to being teensy, the Captorhinus was also extremely primitive. As Dr. Bakker describes it, "If you started as a Captorhinus, you could end up evolving into just about anything." This species is close to the base of almost every modern species' family tree.

If you saw one today, it would look like a chunky lizard with a pointy snout. It also had two complete rows of teeth, for cracking and eating something small and hard, like snails or millipedes.

The HMNS team have found dozens of Captorhinus fossils at the site, including vertebrae, ribs, legs and several examples that are almost complete skeletons. Shed Dimetrodon teeth have been found with these fossils, proving yet another species had a reason to run when the Texas Finback lumbered on the scene.

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The HMNS team have found dozens of Captorhinus fossils at the site, including vertebrae, ribs, legs and several examples Cialis Online that are almost complete skeletons. Shed Dimetrodon teeth have been found with these fossils, proving yet another species had a reason to run when the Texas Finback lumbered on the scene.

About

If you're interested in more general science updates, please visit the Museum's new blog.
For about a year, the Museum has been sending a team of paleontologists and volunteers to Seymour, TX, a little town about 2 hours outside of the Dallas/Fort Worth area that happens to be the world's best site to find Dimetrodon - the biggest, baddest, pre-dinosaur predator.
Led by famous paleontologist Dr. Bob Bakker, the team uses a "CSI" approach - picking out every bit of fossilized evidence they can find, from teeth to tiny bone fragments - in the quest to discover exactly what creatures died here 290 million years ago - and more importantly, how they lived.
While they're in the field, you can follow their exploits here. They'll be posting daily with pictures and information about what they have found and what it all means. You can explore more about the species they are finding and the answers they are looking for at the links below.
They would love to answer your questions - so come back, and post often.

***Note

The team has now returned from Seymour, and though we will be posting relevant updates as they occur, daily discoveries are on hold until they return to the field. Please feel free to explore the links below to learn all about what they've found - and leave us a question or comment to let the team know what you think.